Sani Lodge 4 days / 3 nights

Itinerary

Sani Lodge 4 days / 5 nights

Your journey starts with a 35-minute flight from Quito at 10:30 am to Coca where the staff will pick you up and transfer to a local hotel located on the banks of Napo River. There, your bilingual guides will explain about safety before embarking for a 2 ½ boat trip on the largest Ecuadorian affluent of the Amazon, the Napo River. During the journey you get a taste of the Amazon; ancestral communities, birds such as: herons, egrets, vultures, while enjoying delicious packed lunch. The canoe ride is followed by a 15 minute walk through flooded forest and 20-minute paddle canoe across the beautiful Challuacocha Lake. The staff will welcome you with refreshing cold drinks and snacks before you settle down in your cabins.

Late afternoon, you will have a short walk on the nearby trails or a canoe ride with many chances to observe primates, Amazonian birds, black caimans and a close encounter with the amazing flora represented by cedar trees, orchids, and bromeliads. Return to the lodge, where our chef will be happy to offer a wide variety of national and international cuisine that caters vegetarians and vegans.

After dinner explore our black-water Oxbow Lake, one of the increasingly rare havens for the endangered black caiman, supporting a healthy population of these large up to 6 meter (18ft.) long South-American crocodilian. Back to the lodge. (-/L/D)

After breakfast, experience the life on the tree tops from the 36 meter (118 ft.) observation tower. To get there your leaders will paddle on the Challuacocha Lake for 30 minutes followed by a short 10-minute walk. Over 565 species of birds have been registered so far, including colorful birds such as macaws, toucans, honeycreepers, tanagers, flycatchers, hummingbirds and with a bit of luck a close view of howler, squirrel monkeys or sloths resting on the canopy. The tower gives you a unique perspective, opening up a whole new world of Amazon biodiversity that is often difficult, if not impossible to see from the understory. The journey continues exploring the nearby trails searching for more Amazonian creatures. Return to the lodge for lunch.

After lunch there are many alternatives for your enjoyment, bird-watching from the dining hall or simply get relaxed on the hammocks. In the afternoon, hike Chorongo or Coto trails of 3 hours, fantastic terra-firme forest to discover the relationships among the different living creatures and the role they play in this complex ecosystem. Orchids, vines, strangle figs, ancient trees; bromeliads are all part of this fabulous tropical rainforest. Dinner at the lodge.

After dinner take a night walk to see how myriads of insects, spiders and frogs come alive. (B/L/D)

After breakfast departure to the Napo River to board the boat and visit the parrot-clay lick at Yasuni National Park for a wonderful view of hundreds of parrots searching for a gap to land and eat the earth. Here you will see Mealy Amazon, Yellow-crowned, Orange-winged and Blue-headed parrots. Continue with a hike on the south of the Napo inside Yasuni National Park considered for scientists like the most biodiverse area in the world, here, some species that cannot be found in the north might be spotted: golden–mantled tamarins and spider monkeys, Blue and yellow macaws and with a bit of luck a close encounter with white-lipped or collared peccaries. Head back to Sani Community Center to visit a native house to get a taste of how a typical Kichwa family lives. Enjoy their food, drinks, customs, and culture of the Sani community and learn how the lifestyle of the locals is environmentally sustainable. Return to the lodge late in the afternoon for a well-deserved diner.

After dinner take a night walk to see how myriads of insects, spiders and frogs come alive. (B/L/D)

After breakfast head back to the Napo River to board the boat and visit the parrot’s wall at Yasuni National Park for a wonderful view of hundreds of parrots searching for a gap to land and eat the earth. Here you will see Mealy Amazon, Yellow-crowned, Orange-winged and Blue-headed parrots. Then return to Coca on time to get your flight back to Quito at 11:50 am. (B/BL/-)

The operator reserves the right to change the itinerary without previous notice due to weather, regulations or unforeseeable circumstances.

Leading Tour Operator in mountaineering in Ecuador. We offer outdoor programs in the South American continent, from very easy trekking, moderate hikes to technical high altitude climbs, according to the client’s skills and desires.